Choral Competition - Epsom College

Boys sweep the board at
Choral Competition
T
he boys swept the board again at this
year’s Inter-House Choral Competition,
winning the solo, part song, House Unison
and the overall trophy.
One of the oldest events in the College
calendar, the competition attracted a large
audience of parents and guests, who
expressed their delight and pleasure at the
quality of performance.
Adjudicator at this year’s event was Paul
Johnson, a freelance conductor and organist,
who was recently appointed Director of
Music at St Martin of Tours Parish Church in
Epsom, where he oversees a vibrant music
department.
Solo performances were of a particularly
high standard. For the second year running,
the Jeremy Trott Cup for the best solo
went to Harry Kersley, representing Fayrer
House, singing Bring Him Home from Les
Misérables by Claude-Michel Schönberg.
“Outstanding tone. You tell a great story,
very good indeed,” said Paul Johnson.
The Hugh Carson Cup for the winning
part song went to Robinson House for their
performance of Flash by Freddie Mercury,
Robinson House
winners of the
Inter-House Choral
competition 2012
which the adjudicator described as having
perfect balance and timing with a great mix
of comedy and quality.
Forest House took the Murray Young Cup
for the winning unison for their rendition of
The Grease Megamix by John Farrar, Jim
Jacobs and Warren Casey “Great volume
with a fantastic crescendo, one hundred
percent energy and eye contact. Comedy
gold. I couldn’t stop smiling,” Mr Johnson said.
The Choral Competition Trophy for the
overall winning House went to Robinson,
with Crawfurd in second and Forest third.
Cooking survival course
The stereotypical picture of a student eating
cold baked beans straight from the tin is
worrying for most parents as their teenagers
prepare to leave home and go to university.
Help is now at hand, however, with the
introduction this term of an in-house
cooking course specially designed for the
needs of the U6th form.
Let's Cook...Get Ready for Uni, is a three
week course for small groups of students
that takes place on Tuesday evenings in the
College kitchens.The two hour sessions,
under the direction of Catering Manager,
Bev Spencer, and College chefs, Luc
Audemard and Fernando Martins, cover
basic cooking skills, how to cook a meat
dish and how to create a menu.
In the first week, students learn about
food hygiene, how to prepare fruit and
vegetables, knife skills and how to make
a club sandwich and shortbread biscuits.
During the second week, they learn
about the basics of cooking mincemeat
and get the chance to make a chilli con
carne or spaghetti bolognaise.
In the third and final week, they are
tasked with creating a simple, nutritious
and tasty meal using chicken.
As well as developing a wide variety of
practical skills, the course also covers timeplanning
and organisation. At the end of the
course, students receive a cookery book
with recipes for easy-to-prepare meals using
healthy ingredients.
“Being able to cook is a skill for life.
This course is designed to allow students to
survive at university without mum’s cooking
and will do wonders for their popularity
in halls of residence,” said Sixth Form
Co-ordinator, Jon Whatley.
Big School became an artist’s studio this
term as 22 L6th and U6th form art students
took part in a life drawing workshop
organised by the Royal Academy of Arts
(RA) Outreach Programme.The workshop
was led by the RA’s Paul Brandford, who
has won the Jerwood Drawing Prize and
exhibits his portraits of the Royal Family
and politicians across the country. Each
student created around 12 drawings ranging
from A4 to A1 in size.Work by the L6th
students will be added to their portfolios
and will count towards their AS grade. For
the U6th students, it will provide a useful
asset to those applying to Art College
18 The LINK Michaelmas 2012